work before law school as paralegal

noahlauchengco

Is working as a paralegal before law school guaranteed to provide more satisfaction with the law school experience than someone who just goes in without having worked in a law firm or any type of legal work? can someone break down any misconceptions about this or speak on if working first in the field is smarter than someone who does not?

Alexloveslaw

Yes! I think working in the field before going to law school is invaluable. I have been a paralegal for five years now (in 3 different legal fields) and throughout that time I have been able to a) confirm that I LOVE the law, and b) build up some really valuable connections.

noahlauchengco

sounds great! is there any drawback to someone who does not do this? It is not necessarily scientifically proven that working as one before law school will guarantee success for the person.

noahlauchengco

I have had an attorney before tell me to stay at my non-legal full-time job before law school because I might not have the same flexibility once I enter one when I go to law school, study for the LSAT, etc., and also probability wise out of all the people who are in a certain section in law school, how many of them have actually done this? People can still find to love the law for other reasons than by just working in the field before.

noahlauchengco

I have had an attorney before tell me to stay at my non-legal full-time job before law school because I might not have the same flexibility once I enter one and also probability wise out of all the people who are in a certain section in law school, how many of them have actually done this? People can still find to love the law for other reasons than by just working in the field before.

noahlauchengco

sorry ignore the repeat comment my 7Sage was being weird, but from all that I was just trying to say that others can find the love of hard work and sense of justice through other means than by just working as a paralegal or some other legal assistant job.

mixmotions

I am currently working as a victim witness coordinator (similar to paralegal) for a couple years before starting law school. Since I have not yet started law school, I can't answer your question directly, but can say that having access to attorneys who can guide and support you through the law school admissions process has been invaluable. I am a prospective first-generation law student, so having an alternative mode of guidance is wonderful.

legallybrunette22

My father is an attorney, and he said that a lot of the time when he sees an associate that went K-JD, they are burnt out by the time that they get into the working world. I currently work as a Legal Practice Assistant (aka a Paralegal) and I have been making amazing connections and getting exposed to the legal work before school which I think is so valuable.
I also worked at a law firm in recruiting, and I saw that a lot of the summer associates who had a job beforehand did better than the ones who didnt because they had already spent a couple of years in the "real world" before they went to school and were able to bring those skills into school.

noahlauchengco

Well I am not technically K-JD....I have a previous bachelor's degree before I completed my second one in criminal justice, because I realized I did not want to pursue my first and got into it for the wrong reasons, so i got a full-time job for a year to re-discover what I want to do and during this time is when I decided to get a different bachelor's. During my second degree I took criminal law (when i decided I want to go to law school), underwent a semester internship in criminal justice (where I learned how to network, talked to law enforcement investigators, and attorneys/paralegals), took legal writing class, joined an honor society for my degree, completed a Court Watch program all while working full-time. I am still currently working full-time in my non-legal job and studying for the LSAT, but my current job has taught me a lot of the value of hard work, working on multiple projects, working with a team to achieve a goal at the end of the day, problem solving, discipline, having a backbone, speaking up, building confidence, and justice. So I know the value of working and ready to take those previous skills mentioned to law school and beyond.

P.S. No one can say I never tried either because after graduating with my criminal justice degree in the summer I did try and look for paralegal/legal assistant jobs, but I never heard back, I was currently making more at my current job, and I also got tricked into a job that was less substantial than what they had on their job posting online.

noahlauchengco

I can not just up and quit my full-time job either to pursue a paralegal job, because I need one that will support me as much as my current one does with salary and benefits. I just learn a lot of skills that are surprisingly transferable I believe to the legal world.

gpLSATDESTROYER

You are mistaking the necessary for the sufficient. You don't have to get a paralegal job before Law School to do well. But its a good job to have before law school I'm a paralegal and I like it a lot

noahlauchengco

HAHAHA I love this. Thanks! I think I needed someone to let me see it this way

noahlauchengco

another case can be made for judges and DAs actually as well. There is a lot of talk that they should be required to work in a prison before they send defendants off to a correctional institution. But no where in the job description is this a requirement but an elected position.

noahlauchengco

and sometimes all it takes is to work a job you know will have nothing to do with the legal field but if it can pay for law school then what is the worry?

montesclarossn-1

I think so! I've worked in the legal field for 5+ years now at 4 different firms, from small firms to large corporate firms, working in family and immigration law. Working directly in the field has provided me a more clear picture what I want to do with my law degree. I'm glad I went this route instead of jumping directly into law school after undergrad.